Pokemon: Adventures into Darkness
by Soliddude1175
Summary: What if Ash wasn't the one who was destined to meet the legendary Pokemon of the world or to stop the evil organizations? What if rather, somebody else took that destiny instead? Well, this is that persons story, as they go on a journey to understand the world they live in. Even if it means to do whatever it takes. Rated T for Language and Minor Adult Themes later down the road.
1. Journey of a Lifetime

_Well here this is. My shot of a Pokemon story. However this goes...I guess we'll see._

* * *

"Who's there?"

The sounds of whispers gently flowed through the room, bouncing off the walls of the oddly colored prism. A boy floated in the middle of them, horrible terrified of the sounds around him. Looking back and forth to check his surroundings, he only saw the walls that surrounding him. He was in a prison, and this was his torture. But what crime did he commit. Why was he even there?

"Are you sure this is a wise choice?" Came a whisper from any direction. In any sense, it was impossible to indicate the direction of sound in this area.

"I liked the looks of the first one better?" Came a different voice, much louder this time. Despite the volume of this one voice, all of the sounds made seemed to project power in them. Each one showed some sign of authority over something.

"Now now, it was never your decision to begin with! If it was yours, there'd be no hope!" Jeered a different voice.

"How dare you! Do you know who you are talking to? I am the king of my domain, and that is most certainly better than anything you could achieve!"

"Oh hush you, all you ever do is blabber on about nonsense! I say we let things be and leave fate to travel its own course."

"He is absolutely right." Came a voice that seemed to hush all the other whispers. "We must rely on the fact that this is our decision and we cannot change that." There was a silence. "Of course, this is a change though. But under my orders, there will be no more change. We will leave things be, as time is officially up. The boy is turning ten years old today, and he has already been blessed by all of us. There is no turning back anymore. Now, my brethren, return to wherest you came from. The time has come!"

Then, a light. A faint yellow light appeared in front of the boy. But slowly, it started growing. Bigger and bigger and bigger it seemed, until it engulfed his vision and made it near impossible to see. He wanted it to end, he wanted to be out of this, to go back to where things made sense again. He just wanted this horrible nightmare to be over, to be able to return to the realm of reality once more.

And his wish was granted just a few seconds later.

Bolting upright, the boy reached a 90 degree angle on his bed, panting heavily. That was sure an experience.

Looking over, the boy could see sunlight shining through his bedroom window. It was a new day, and it certainly was a special day for him. Today, he was ten years old, and that meant it was finally time. He was finally able to begin a journey. Hopping out of bed, the boy rushed to the window and looked outside to see a flock of Pidgey fly east bound. Looking out towards the horizon, the boy reached out his hand and creating a fist with it. It was as if the world was in his hand.

"Johto region, here I come!" He cheered, heading back into his bedroom. Looking around, he noticed some clothes placed on his dresser. Thinking back, the boy remembered he picked out these clothes specifically for this day. These would be his traveling clothes, he would where these everywhere he went, do anything he could do, just let the wind flow through them. It would be to signify his accomplishment of being out on a journey. He set to work on changing out, whilst looking at his clock. He had half an hour to get dressed, eat breakfast, and make his way to Professor Elm's Research Facility. Not to worry though, the place was right next to his, so he wouldn't have to go very far.

Once he was finished putting on his clothes, he checked himself out in his mirror. For being ten years old, he definitely looked good. Placing a white cap over his slick black hair, he gave himself a grin, staring right into his blue eyes. He was wearing a red short-sleeved shirt with a white stripe horizontally crossing it in the middle. He also wore grey baggy pants with plenty of pockets. His blue laced running shoes fit comfortably over the feet of the ten year old. Grabbing his green backpack, which was right beside his personal TV, he swung it on and nodded once more. He was ready to go.

Running downstairs, the boy quickly found his breakfast and gulped it down. Putting his plate aside, the boy walked over to the living room to find his mother watching her television. It was scenes from the recent Kanto League that just finished. She was watching the playbacks of the series, and he could only guess for one reason. To find his father.

The boys parents were technically still married, but his father had left them completely behind without even bothering to say goodbye. Despite her friends saying otherwise, the boys mother still cared for this man, and wanted to see him again. Any leads she could find on him, she would take it. She just needed some closure, and the boy understood that well.

"Hey Mom? Its time." The boy spoke, grimace in his voice. His mother looked over with a smile.

"First your father goes, and now you." Its all she could say before she choked down into tears and rushing into her son, giving him a hug. "But its alright. I know that you're going out on a journey because, its what you want to do. I can't keep you from that. But, please stay in contact and don't let me out of your heart. Will you?"

"No need to worry Mom." The boy nodded. He pointed straight to his wristwatch that acted as a Pokegear at the same time. Convenient for him.

"Thank you." She said, embracing him yet more. "Now then, you go get them Noah! Show them how well you can do in this world!"

"I will Mom. Count on it!" The boy, now called Noah nodded. Stepping outside, Noah took in a deep breath before stepping more. He paid no mind to the door shutting behind him.

Looking down at the familiar sign, Noah smiled. The sign stated location, that he was in New Bark Town. All his life, he lived here. He did so many things, played with all the children in the area, learned about Pokemon here and even befriended some for some time. But now, he was going to befriend them for life. He was going to create so many memories that he couldn't possibly forget. He was going to be the greatest that the world had ever seen. He just knew that he could do it, despite how hard he knew it would be. Already, Noah knew what he wanted to do. To become a Pokemon Master by challenging the eight Johto Gym Leaders, challenging the Johto League, and then challenge the Elite Four and Champion. He would be champion, and he wanted the world to know it.

"Noah!" Came a familiar voice. Noah looked around to find his old friend Lyra running up to him. Along with her partner Pokemon Marill the two made an excellent combo.

"Today's the day." Noah nodded, confidence brimming within him.

"I can't wait to figure out which Pokemon you're gonna get Noah! You get to choose between Chikorita, Cyndaquil, and Totodile right? Oh man, I wish I could've had that decision!"

"Except your decision was to get Marill!" Noah laughed, with Lyra and Marill laughing alongside.

"Yeah yeah, laugh all you want. I'm glad I picked Marill, I wouldn't have wanted a different option even if I was given the option!" Lyra looked down at her partner, who cried out with glee.

"Then what was all that talk just now?" Noah smirked.

"Hey, lets just ignore that now. Besides, whats with all the talk about me? This is your special day after all!"

"Yeah, you're right. Well, I've gotta get moving. Lets hope Professor Elm remembers that we have to meet up." Noah nodded.

"Have you decided on what starter you want?" Lyra asked.

"Of course!" Noah nodded.

This was such a lie. Noah couldn't narrow down the decisions if he wanted to. Grass, Fire, Water, all three would have their benefits at one point or another. Could he possible make such an important decision such as this? Well, he was gonna have to if he was to get anywhere in this whole journey thing. So, he put this behind him for now and made way to the lab. Which was about ten feet away. So, Noah walked in.

The lab was full of science. That's the best way Noah could figure it because he didn't understand anything he saw. Not even school helped out because he was so lost on all of this. But what was most important was getting to Professor Elm. Fortunately, he was right at the back of the room. So, Noah advanced towards the Professor with a confident smile. "Hello Professor Elm, I'm here for my Pokemon!"

"Ah yes, I knew I had something to do today!" The professor nodded, rushing over to another room. Noah could only sweatdrop at this very random motion. He seemed as though he wanted to return to his work. Shame, he's just gonna have to stay occupied for just a little bit.

Just as fast as he came in, the Professor bolted out the same door with three Pokeballs in his hands. However, he managed to trip over his own feet in the process of running, and he fell to the ground with a splat. Noah could only cringe as he stared at the poor Pokemon Professor.

"Now then, I have three Pokemon for you. However, you may only choose one of these three. The one you pick shall be your starting Pokemon, the one whom you shall bond with most excellently. The three are as followed. Chikorita, the Grass type! Cyndaquil, the Fire type! And Totodile, the Water type!"

Throwing the Pokeballs to the sky, a blinding light shown from the three. When it was over, three creatures took their place on the ground. The first was a green creature with a leaf on its head. It was a female, and seemed to be quite relaxed. The second was a fire creature that looked similar to an armadillo. Fire shot out of the male's back, it seemed confident. The third was a water creature that looked like a small crocodile, what with the strong jaws and the tail. It was male, and it seemed ravenous.

"Now then, what shall be your choice?" Professor Elm asked the boy.

Noah began thinking quickly. The key to a great beginning would be making the correct choice. Now, he knew he was planning on challenging the gyms, so he needed someone strong. But strength wasn't the only thing that mattered, as strategy would also be important. And even with the battling, nothing would matter if they didn't make a great traveling companion. If he was going to travel, he needed somebody who would be right with him all the way, someone who would think like him, get him out of tough spots, and most certainly make smart choices alongside him. Looking back and forth at the three over and over again, Noah felt like he was having a war inside his brain. He knew he had to make a decision now, so he closed his eyes and said the first one that came to mind.

"Totodile." He said, opening his eyes.

The two Pokemon that were not chosen groaned. However, their groans were drowned out by the cheer of the lucky blue Pokemon who jumped at his new trainer. The two embraced for the first time, bringing about the beginning of something great. Professor Elm released the two that were not chosen and handed Noah Totodile's Pokeball. Then without another word, he went back to his research. Noah and Totodile blinked at this, as they were certain that there should've been more than that. But they shrugged it off and grinned at each other.

"You ready Totodile?" Noah asked his new partner. With a determined nod and a cry of glee, Noah returned the Pokemon. Placing it in his pockets, he walked out of the lab to find Lyra waiting.

"So, who'd ya pick? I bet it was Chikorita, wasn't it?"

"That's what you would pick Lyra! No, I actually got Totodile. I felt that there would be a strong connection between us that I wouldn't have with the other two. Like, something inside me said it was the right choice."

"Well, I wish you the best of luck. Here, take this." Lyra pulled out a Pokeball and handed it to Noah. "Think of this as my lucky charm. Whoever you catch with it, lets hope it brings you luck as well. Now, you have my number right? Oh of course you do, what am I saying? You couldn't possibly forget to call your best friend from home now would you!"

"Of course not! You should know that!" Noah laughed, extending a hand. Lyra looked down for a moment, just for a moment, before extending her hand. The two shook hands, and then it was over. Once they let go, they went their separate ways. Lyra went back to playing with Marill, and Noah went towards the exit of New Bark Town. He looked over it one last time and let the memories he had here flow back in him. He spent his whole life here, ten years. Anything he could remember, it was here. And now he had to say goodbye.

But he still smiled. This wouldn't be the last time he'd see this place, no! He'd come back whenever he could, he knew he would. There's no place like home after all, where his friends and family were waiting, cheering him on all the way until the very end. He knew this, and he knew for sure that it would be what would keep him moving forward. So, he turned around, towards what awaited, and he started moving. His journey had officially begun.

And no sooner had he begun walking did a Pokemon suddenly spring at him. A Rattata, and it looked fierce. Noah had seen this Pokemon before, they had appeared sporadically around New Bark Town from time to time. Grinning, he threw out his Totodile. His first fight, and he was ready.

"Now Totodile, use-uh..." Noah looked down. He didn't actually know any of Totodile's moves, and he had no way of knowing how.

"Hey Rattata, what are you doing battling this kid?" A voice asked. Noah looked up to see a kid in a yellow shirt and blue shorts. He had a blue cap twisted backwards, and from looks, it didn't seem that he was a very serious type of guy.

"Did you just call me a kid?" Noah asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Yeah, I mean come on! You just left New Bark Town and you have a Totodile! You're ten years old starting today and that makes you a kid!"

"Oh yeah, when did you start your journey?"

"Some time back. Although, I kinda got delayed on training because I was asked to participate in some challenge. Then I got accepted to join a gameshow, but somehow lost it. Eh, who cares? I got a chance to meet the legendary Pokemon Mewtwo!"

Noah had watched that game-show before, and this kid did look familiar. "Youngster Joey, is it?"

"Yep, that's me! You want an autograph?"

"Better. I want a battle! This is my first one, so I want to see just how my guy can fight."

"Well then me and Rattata accept your challenge!" Joey cheered before pulling out a device. "Hmm, so this is a Totodile. Its moves are Scratch, Leer, Water Gun, and Bite it seemed. Oh boy, this will be exciting. Lets go Rattata!"

Noah breathed a sigh of relief. This kid just told him the move set of his Pokemon. What a relief.

"Alright Totodile, we go first! Start off with a Leer!" Noah commanded. With a gleam in its eyes, the water Pokemon complied. The Rattata backed up, but seemed slightly unnerved. Well, it has fought Mewtwo before after all.

"Alright Rattata, if its gonna do that, then you should use Tail Whip!" Joey ordered. Rattata jumped in the air and flung its tail in Totodile's face. This made Totodile feel intimidated. Yet not that type of intimidate.

"Totodile, Bite attack!" Noah yelled. Using its strong jaws, Totodile lunged forward.

"Quick Rattata, dodge with Quick Attack!" Rattata began trying to move away, but Joey had waited too long. Totodile bite Rattata right on the tail, holding the Pokemon in place.

"Now use Water Gun!" From its mouth came a large gush of water that engulfed the rat Pokemon. Totodile was propelled backwards from this despite this being its first battle. It couldn't have been that strong, could it? Noah could only guess that it was a Critical Hit.

And it showed well. Rattata was already down and out. With its eyes circling, the Pokemon had fainted. Joey was utterly flabbergasted by this lost as he returned his Pokemon.

"Jeez, I didn't know I was battling a born natural! Say, why don't I give you my phone number?"

Before Noah could even say yes or no, Joey had already grabbed his wrist and punched in the contact. Whether he liked it or not, Noah could now talk to Joey whenever he wanted to.

"Well, I gotta go. Take care new friend!" Joey nodded, waving wildly as he took off in the direction he ran off in. Which was the woods, which made Noah worried that something would jump out at him at any point. None the less, Noah had faith that Joey would be fine as he continued traveling forward. Since Totodile didn't really take any damage from that fight, there was no need to immediately turn around. Nope, he was just fine as of now.

As he walked, Noah took in everything around him. He was on a journey, a real journey. Everything surrounding him was real, this wasn't just a made up dream. Thinking about dreams made Noah think back to the dream he had the night before. The enclosed space he was, the voices surrounding him saying something about fate. He knew it was just a dream, but something about it made Noah curious. Why did he have this dream the day he was to set out on his journey. What purpose did this dream have, and who did the voices belong to?

"Sen!"

Noah looked down to see that while lost in thought, he had accidentally stepped on the tail of a Sentret. Jumping up on said tail, Sentret quickly assumed battle position before getting curling into a ball. That must've been Defense Curl.

"Totodile, lets go!" Noah cried, throwing out his trusty ally once more. "Toto!" The Pokemon cried as it landed on the ground. The Sentret began zooming towards Totodile at high speeds. Quick Attack.

"Alright Totodile, use Bite! Catch it with your jaws!" As the Sentret reached Totodile, he opened his mouth wide and slammed down. The impact of making Sentret stop however sent Totodile tumbling onto his head, releasing the injured Sentret. The wild Pokemon quickly raised his arm as it glowed white before scratching Totodile, getting a free hit. Scratch.

"Totodile! Get back up and use your own Scratch!" Noah commanded. Totodile slowly got up and raised his own hand, it glowing white. As Sentret prepared another Scratch attack, Totodile charged at the wild Pokemon. The two clashed, but Totodile was stronger. Sending Sentret to the ground, the attack gave Totodile enough time to get itself back closer to Noah.

By now, the Pokemon could barely stand. Noah nodded, this one was a keeper. So, he pulled out Lyra's lucky Pokeball and remembered the words she said to him about it. Smiling, he raised it to the sky.

"Pokeball, go!"

Throwing the ball, it made direct contact with the Sentret. As it bounced off, it then opened. A red light encapsulated the Sentret as it was sucked into the ball. Once the red light stopped, the ball closed. Hitting the ground, the ball began shaking over and over again. Throughout the whole time, Noah and Totodile watched nervously as it rocked back and forth and back and forth. It seemed to go on forever before it finally stopped. With a ding, the Pokemon had been captured.

"Woo-hoo! Way to go Totodile!" Noah cheered, rushing over to the ball and picking up.

"Toto!" The water Pokemon cried out with excitement as he jumped onto the shoulder of his trainer. Noah nodded, this new Pokemon was going to be lucky. He just knew it would.

Suddenly, he heard the faint sound of something. Almost like...grumbling.

"Augh, seems like I'm hungry!" Noah laughed, with Totodile doing the same. Suddenly, a new grumbling sound appeared. Totodile then began laughing, and it quickly became obvious that he was also hungry. The two laughed for a while before the realization dawned on them that they had no food on them.

See, Noah isn't exactly the one to remember to pack things. So, remembering to pack some food wasn't something on his to-do list. Rather, the only thing he could think of was getting a Pokemon. So now they were stuck in the middle of a route with no food. Boy, this was going to be a long journey.

As time passed, Noah quickly checked his Pokegear. Along with being a reliable phone, this was also capable of a map function. With this, he could figure out which direction to go at any given time, and also to figure out where he was supposed to be next, along with some useful advice on the area itself. Once he learned that he still had some ways to go before arriving at the nearest town, Noah groaned. Wasn't there some sort of restaurant out in the open or something?

"Ummm, excuse me?"

Noah turned around upon hearing this voice, and instantly perked up. Standing there were two young women looking right in his direction. Now then, Noah's no idiot when it comes to women, even if he was just ten years old. He was definitely not oblivious like some other unnamed trainers. No, when he found a beautiful woman in front of him, he knew just what to do.

"Yes, can I help you?" He asked genuinely.

"We want to battle you in a double battle!" One of them declared.

"Hey, don't be so rash with that. I know your energy is up, but don't explode. I mean come on!" The other laughed. Noah blinked, these two seemed to know each other well.

"Heh heh, sorry about that! Well, what do you say?"

"Of course I'm down for a battle. So what, will it be you two against two of my guys?"

"That's right. So, lets get down to business. Oh I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself! I'm Addison, nice to meet you."

"And I'm Jessica! Its quite a pleasure!"

"Names Noah. Glad to meet you two."

Now lets get to describing, shall we. Out of the two, Addison was taller by just a little bit. She had brown hair while Jessica had blond hair. Jessica seemed to be a bit more hyper when it came to things while Addison seemed to be a little more graceful when it came to things. While Addison had her hair in a ponytail, Jessica had hers running down. The former was wearing a red shirt and yoga pants while the latter was wearing a blue shirt and wore running shorts. Both wore pink shoes with laces, and they both seemed to always have a smile on their faces. Lovely, now lets get to battling. Shall we?

The battlefield was set. Noah was on one side with the two girls on the other side. Both held a Pokeball in their hands and released them simultaneously. Addison's Pokemon revealed to be a Chikorita while Jessica's Pokemon revealed to be a Cyndaquil. Fitting for their personalities, Noah thought.

"Totodile, Sentret, lets roll!" Noah yelled, releasing the two Pokemon on the battlefield.

"Awww, that Sentret is so cute!" Jessica cried out, looking down right at the Scout Pokemon, who blushed at the remark. This, made Totodile agitated. It was a simple warning this time with the Water Pokemon growling at his partner.

"Hey now, you two don't' need to be fighting on me now!" Noah groaned. Sentret simply ignored Totodile and prepared itself for battle. Totodile huffed and did the same thing.

"You ready Addison?" Jessica asked her partner. She nodded in agreement as they pointed forward in unison. "Cyndaquil, Ember!"

"Chikorita, Razor Leaf!"

In unison still, Chikorita unleashed a swarm of leaves at the two opponents. Cyndaquil meanwhile unleashes some small flames at the same time in the same direction. However, the flames hit the leaves and they burned to a crisp. This also managed to have the flames wear off, leaving the two females dumbfounded on what just happened.

"We practiced this, how did we mess up!?" Jessica cried out.

"Because when we practiced, it never worked before. Ugh, how are we ever going to win the Performance?" Addison groaned. The two kept complaining for some time, leaving Noah, Totodile, and Sentret in a state of confusion. They didn't know how to respond to this, but Chikorita and Cyndaquil seemed worried.

"Uh, is everything ok?" Noah asked.

"No, its not! If our moves aren't good enough, we'll never be good enough to win in any performances!" Jessica groaned.

"Performances?"

"Oh yes." Addison nodded. "You see, me and Jessica are performers. We compete separately, but we work together when we aren't in it. In our quest to become the Johto Queen, we need three Princess Keys. But if our moves aren't good enough, how can we even get one?"

"Well uh...I'm no expert of Pokemon Performances or whatever they are, but you guys just need training and more hard work. That's all."

"But that's no good!" Jessica exclaimed. "The Cherrygrove City Pokemon Performance is tomorrow and we already signed up!"

"Well, then-."

Before Noah could finish, a loud bang was heard, followed by smoke engulfing the field and the three trainers. With no idea what was going on, Noah could only try not to breathe in the smoke. What was this, what just happened. He know he didn't do anything, so it was something else. But what? As soon as the smoke cleared, the answer became apparent. In the middle of the battlefield was a truck. On the sides of the truck were four people. Two men, two woman, laughing. They each wore a similar black outfit. And on the truck was a pink R. The four Pokemon were nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, who are you people?" Noah asked.

"Heh, we're Team Rocket of course!" One of the men laughed. "Us Grunts were hired to steal some Pokemon, and our luck brought us to you!"

"What do you mean?" Addison asked. It was then that they started hearing the cries of Pokemon. It was faint, but it definitely sounded like that of Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Sentret.

"You...kidnapped our Pokemon!?" Noah screamed.

"That's right!" The same grunt laughed. "Each Pokemon we capture shall be enlisted into the Team Rocket army, so our boss can slowly gain the steps to become ruler of the world! And we shall stand by his side above all you lowly people! Now if you excuse us, we'll be on our way."

The two facing Noah rushed towards the drivers seat of the car while the two facing Addison and Jessica went to the back seats of the truck. Once they jumped in, the engine roared to life.

"Chikorita no!"

"Cyndaquil!"

Addison and Jessica were going hysterical over their Pokemon. But Noah, he made no sound. He stared at the truck, feeling anger and hatred flow through him. This was the start of his journey, and these goons were trying to end it now. He wouldn't have it, he wasn't going to let these freaks get away with it. So, he did something he didn't think he'd ever do in his entire journey. As the truck started moving, he grabbed onto the handlebars on the back of the truck. As the truck drove away, he held on, not letting go.

Noah was certainly good at endurance, but he wasn't that good. It was the will of not wanting to lose his Pokemon that made him not let go. So, he put his feet against the base of the truck and began to pull at the doors. It took some time, but the doors eventually flew open. Swinging the door he was still holding onto, he stuck the landing inside the truck. Looking inside, he saw the four Pokemon inside a cage looking up at Noah. There was a look of relief in their eyes as they saw who had come to rescue them.

"Alright, I'm going to get you out of here." Noah nodded, looking around the inside of the truck for anything useful. Luckily, he found a crowbar he could use. Picking it up, he proceeded to pry off the top of each cage, with the help of the Pokemon inside of course. In due time, all four Pokemon were freed.

"Now then." Noah looked back towards the exit of the truck. The truck was still speeding along, there was no way to jump out. No, there would have to be another way...

Well, that way never came as a small sliding window appeared from where the Grunts were sitting. Only the eyes could be seen, but Noah saw the look of shock in those eyes. "Stop the truck!" Was what he heard next, followed by the screeching of tires. When the truck stopped, the five jumped out and began running. They didn't look back, they just ran. Unfortunately, one of those Grunts had a Zubat that quickly caught up to them and shot a Supersonic in their direction. Noah jumped out of the way, but the other four Pokemon were hit and confused. Then came an Ekans which quickly wrapped around Noah and began to squeeze.

"Ha ha ha! Did you really think it was going to be that easy?" One of the female Grunts sneered.

Noah was starting to see stars. Wow, he thought. Is this really it? Am I really going to die now? My journey only just begun, there's so much I've yet to do! I don't want it to end now, but what can I do? But there was nothing he could do as he slowly passed out from the lack of oxygen.

* * *

Slowly opening his eyes, Noah woke up. He didn't know what was going on, he could barely comprehend anything. He heard sounds though. As his vision slowly came back to him, he saw four familiar Pokemon looking into his eyes. They all breathed with a sigh of relief as he slowly got up. Looking around, Noah could not see the truck anywhere, nor did he find those Grunts. Instead, he saw a figure staring onward. His back was turned to Noah, so he couldn't see who it was. But he had a giant Pokemon by his side. Yep, he could tell it was a guy, especially when he spoke.

"Emboar, return."

The Emboar grunted as the familiar red light encapsulated the Pokemon. The five stared at the man, wondering if he was going to say anything more. He didn't turn around, but he certainly said something. Something that Noah would never forget for possibly the rest of his life.

"Your lucky. No wonder they chose you."

Then he walked away. Totodile attempted to chase after, but Noah called him back. He knew that it would be a bad idea for his Pokemon to run off. He didn't want to lose him again. Noah however took those words to heart. This man knew something that he didn't know about him. Could it be his father or something? Who knew, but for some reason, an image of the dream from the night before popped back into his head. Could he have meant that? No, that was silly to think of, it was a dream. How could he...

"Noah!" Came the familiar unison cries of Addison and Jessica. Chikorita and Cyndaquil cried out as well and reunited with their trainers. After some time of embrace, the two were returned. The ladies then went up to Noah.

"We heard an explosion in this direction and saw smoke rising. Are you ok?" Addison asked with a worrisome tone in her voice.

Noah looked down at Totodile and Sentret, and saw them smiling as well. He turned back. "Yep, I'm just fine. So long as my Pokemon are, I'll always be."

With cries of glee, Noah's two Pokemon jumped into his arms and embraced him. This was indeed the beginning of something great, this man and his Pokemon would share these memories forever more. Nothing could possibly separate them from anything that they'd face. No matter what, they'd do it together.

Then came a rumble. Yep, Noah was still hungry, and his Pokemon were as well. "Man, we've still got to get some food!" Noah laughed. But looking in the sky made him worry. It was sunset, and it would be dark soon. There was no way he'd be traveling on his own in the dark.

"Hey, we have some food with us. Chow time I guess!" Jessica smiled pulling out some granola bars. By now, any food would be good. So, after drooling for a bit, the three grabbed their respected bar and ate it up.

"Say Jessica, we need to go. The Performance won't be waiting for us, you know." Addison spoke in between bites of food.

"Shoot, your right. Hey Noah, we gotta get going."

"To Cherrygrove City, right?" Noah asked. The two nodded in unison. "Then why don't I come with you? That's the next city down, so I'm heading in that direction anyway. Its not a problem with you two, is it?"

The two ladies looked at each other before turning back to Noah. "Of course your welcome to join us! At least, to Cherrygrove." Jessica nodded.

"Then what are we waiting for? Lets hurry back before it gets dark!" Addison laughed. Now that the food was done, Noah returned his two Pokemon and put the Pokeballs in his pockets.

"Alright, lets do it." Noah nodded. And so, the three set off. Hopefully, they'd make it before sunset. They certainly weren't running though. But none the less, this was their choice, their journey. They could do whatever they want on it. And whatever they choose, they're happy with it. And so, Noah, Addison, and Jessica make way to Cherrygrove City. As the journey continues!

 **To Be Continued...**

* * *

 _And there's the first chapter. Now then, lets get some details out of the way._

 ** _1\. As you can see, this adventure is starting in Johto. Every other region, I plan to include. This will also include the region based evil team(s)._**

 ** _2\. As you can also see, an Emboar appeared in this chapter. Every region by now has already been discovered and thus there are Pokemon from all those regions everywhere. However, Noah will only be catching Pokemon that have showed up by the time that region debuted. That does not follow for Noah's traveling partners._**

 ** _3\. The Pokegear phone system isn't going to be used very much. It is only used to gain a connection with Youngster Joey, who will play a more prominent role later._**

 ** _4\. There will be four main protagonist traveling in Johto. Noah is one of them._**

 ** _5\. Because I'm sure a lot of people noticed by now, Noah does not have a Pokedex intentionally. He'll get one later, but for now, he did not get it not just because I forgot it, but because Professor Elm forgot it._**

 ** _6\. There will be 8 gyms that Noah will conquer for each region. No more, no less. End of story._**

 ** _7\. Noah will only be holding 6 Pokemon at a time. There will be no use of the PC until Noah starts going cross region._**

 ** _8\. Noah will be training his Pokemon at a moderate level. His Pokemon will evolve whenever they feel like it. End of story._**

 ** _9\. On that note, the entirety of Johto has already been planned. That includes Pokemon captured and when the evolution occur. This also includes anything involving Team Rocket._**

 ** _10\. As already mentioned, Noah isn't oblivious. He is rather smart, and can use that to his advantage. End of story._**

 ** _11\. OC's will not be allowed in this story. If you want your character involved, I'm sorry._**

 ** _12\. Here's something important. Youngster Joey mentioned the Sole Smasher, a series I created. This means that the videogame worlds do indeed connect to each other and as such can be crossed at any time. If I have gone through every region, then I'll start going to these worlds. Look forward to that whenever I get there._**

 ** _13\. Personalities for the more known characters such as Gym Leaders and Champions may seem a little off, but that's just my creative mind going to work._**

 _And there you have it. Some basic guidelines for this new story. If there's something I missed, its because I forgot it. Actually, one more thing! At the end of each chapter, there will be an update on Noah and his partners Pokemon, their current moveset, and Noah's Pokedex entry count (yes, he will get one). There will also be a Pokemon Question of the Day, so I would love to get your opinions on that._

 _So anyway, yeah. I don't know who may be reading this out there, but I just want to say thank you to all of those who have shown their support towards me in this hard time in my life. I'm definitely getting somewhere, so that's good. So anyway, I'll try to make a schedule for this, so as I always say...stay solid and peace!_

 _Noah_

 _Pokemon Captured: 2_

 _Totodile (Water Type)_

 _Known Moves: Scratch, Leer, Water Gun, Bite_

 _Sentret (Normal Type)_

 _Known Moves: Scratch, Quick Attack, Defense Curl_

 _Without a Pokedex, self analysis cannot continue_

 ** _Questions of the Day: What was your first Pokemon game and which starter did you choose?_**

 ** _For me, my first game was Pokemon Soulsilver, the re-release of Pokemon Silver. And my starter was Chikorita._**


	2. The Beauty of Pokemon

_Alright, so I'm gonna try and make it something to reply to the reviews at the beginning of each chapter._

 ** _Warriorsfan101:_** _I'm glad you think that! I'm looking forward to this just the same, and that means I can assure you that you won't be disappointed._

 _ **Thefourthed:** That is an excellent question. Here's my layout. Every chapter shall consist of something important to the plot. While each chapter will not include a Gym Battle, there will be chapters that bring importance to the layout, mainly for either plot developing with the evil organizations or some character building that will add up in the future. But no, there will be no chapters that seem like 'Oh boy, nothings happening.' I don't plan for this to be like the anime in that regard. So, I hope that answers your question for you. (I sure hope that's what you meant by filler)_

 _And now, without further ado, lets see if chapter 2 can be as long as chapter 1._

* * *

"Phew, we made it!" Jessica sighed as she stepped into the perimeter of Cherrygrove City. Turning around, she saw Noah and Addison trailing behind. Clearly, they weren't meant for running. "Come on slowpokes, we still have a little more to go!"

"Easy for you to say." Addison mumbled under her breathe. Noah chuckled at that, for he actually heard that. He began to wonder how often these two were in a situation like this.

Regardless, they had made it. After the incident with Team Rocket, Noah found himself traveling with Addison and Jessica after promising them that he'd watch them in the Pokemon Performance despite having no idea what it even was. They had hoped to make it before dark, so they began running. Thing is, Noah was obviously not in the best of shape at the time after being knocked out. He could certainly keep up with Jessica, but he didn't have the strength to do so. Fortunately, Addison trailed behind with them. It only took about ten minutes to reach Cherrygrove City, the first rest stop for Noah.

Coming across a building with an orange roof, Noah recognized this immediately as a Pokemon Center. School had certainly helped him on the general knowledge of the world. Pokemon Centers meant a place where Pokemon could be fully restored to full health, and they also served as a motel for those staying for the night. Noah also knew that the person of interest in a Pokemon Center was none other than Nurse Joy, a girl with pink hair and a hospital attire. They were always with their partner Chansey, who would help around the hospital. Thing is, every Pokemon Center had a Nurse Joy, so it was weird. They were all family connected in some way, but Noah didn't bother to look too deep into that.

Stepping into the Pokemon Center, Noah instantly felt relaxed. The place had that vibe going, where he felt that everything would be alright. Any aching he had felt seemed to just drift away. He felt as if he was home for some reason.

"Excuse me, Nurse Joy?" Jessica asked, going up to the front desk where Nurse Joy would normally be waiting. However, she was nowhere in sight. That is, until she stepped out from the back room to attend to those in need.

"Hello there Jessica. Oh, and hello to you as well Addison. And uh, who are you?" Nurse Joy asked, looking right at Noah. Suddenly, he didn't feel so at home anymore.

"He's our friend Noah." Addison politely answered.

"Oh, so he's your friend? That's good to hear. Well, I'm available if you want me to look after your Pokemon for the night."

"Did you get some sort of stalker vibe from me?" Noah muttered to himself.

"Did you say something?"

"Uh, sure! I'll be happy to take you up on your offer!" Noah quickly stated, pulling out two Pokeballs. His Totodile and Sentret definitely needed some sort of rest after the day they'd been through. Addison and Jessica pulled out their Pokeballs, Chikorita and Cyndaquil would also need rest. But then they pulled out a second Pokeball each, which really confused Noah. They had a second Pokemon?

"Alright, I'll take good care of them. They'll be all good to go for the Pokemon Performance tomorrow, so no need to worry! Now, you two go get some rest, ok?" Nurse Joy smiled before taking the Pokeballs into the back room. She definitely seemed off for a Nurse Joy, but hopefully, she was the only one like that. Something then popped into Noah's head, but she was already gone. He sighed, he'd ask tomorrow.

Turning his head, he quickly asked the two gals what was on his mind otherwise. "So, you have two Pokemon each? What are they?"

Addison and Jessica turned towards each other before giggling. "Its a secret!" Addison playfully smirked.

"You'll just have to see the performance now won't you!"

Noah tilted his head to the side. "Wait, aren't you two working together with Chikorita and Cyndaquil?"

"No, that's not how performances work exactly. You see, its every lady for themself." Addison nodded. Now Noah was even more confused.

"Maybe you should read something about it." Addison pointed to a section of the Pokemon Center that held brochures for activities. "We're heading home."

"Nurse Joy should have a room available for you. You oughta check it out. Well, goodnight!" Jessica smiled and waved as she and her friend walked out of the center.

Noah shook his head. Boy, this was an interesting way to start his journey indeed. Heading towards the brochures, he examined them before finding a yellow one titled 'Pokemon Performances for Dummies'. While not liking the idea of considering himself stupid, he knew that this would likely be the only way to understand how Pokemon Performances work. So, he grabbed one off the rack, sat down on one of the benches, flipped to the inside of the brochure and began reading to himself.

 **A Pokemon Performance is a competition in which ladies from all across the world compete in elegant rounds to become queen.**

 **In order to participate in a Pokemon Performance, you must have two requirements. One, you must be female. Two, you must have at least two Pokemon by your side.**

 **How it works: There are two rounds to Pokemon Performances. The first round is different depending on the location of performances. It could be dressing up your Pokemon to creating delicious deserts with your Pokemon. It could be keeping a beat to music, or it could even be a cosplay performance. Regardless, three ladies will compete at a time, and the one who the judges think did the best moves on to the second round. Anyone who does not make it past the first round is eliminated.**

 **In the second round, people work with their Pokemon to create a stunning act using whatever they can hold at that time and the moves of the two Pokemon of their choice. These acts can be anything, but they are preferred to be dazzling and can really wow the audience.**

 **How one wins: At the end of the second round, the audience makes the final decision on who wins. Using a light provided to them, each member of the audience may vote for one person once. The person with the most votes at the end of the voting session is the winner of that Performance and will earn a Princess Key in commemoration of that day.**

 **What happens next: Pokemon Performers require three Princess Keys to enter the final stage, Master Class. The Master Class is a once per year competition that allows anyone with three Princess Keys to compete. In Master Class, people and Pokemon work together to put everything they've learned to the test in the attempt to truly wow the audience. After a couple elimination rounds, the audience will vote on a winner. The winner of Master Class will earn a Queen Key. They will then be known as Queen of that region for the year.**

 **Afterwards: If Pokemon Performers continue afterwards, they must go to other regions and start anew. This process is repeated throughout every region. However, only one person has been successful in collecting six Queen Keys, one for each region in which Pokemon Performances are held. That person is known as the Performance Queen. She is the aspiring role model of all Pokemon Performers out in the world, as she has done all she can do.**

 **Where to sign up: Pokemon Performances are sporadic. Wherever the judges feel satisfied at, there will be a Pokemon Performance held there. Performers travel large distances just to reach performances so they can make the deadline for Master Class. Performances are held everywhere though, so there is never a time where a Performance is too far away to any one person.**

"Preparing to watch tomorrows performance?" A voice spoke. Noah looked up to see a girl peering down at him. She was wearing a green shirt with a Pokeball logo on the corner. She also wore leggings and shiny red shoes that would make anyone think Wizard of Oz if they were heels. She was wearing glasses and had her hair tied back in a ponytail. She must've just gotten into the Pokemon Center.

"Yes I am. Although I really have no idea what it was when I first heard it, so that's why I'm looking it up." Noah answered.

"Ah, I see. Well, you should be in for quite a show tomorrow. Its going to be a lot of first times for many people, like me! Hi, I'm Angela." She smiled, extending a hand.

"And I'm Noah." Noah replied, shaking her hand. "So, you have a plan for tomorrow?"

"Yes I do actually. I sure hope it works, especially on live tv. Anything going wrong there would be horrifying."

"Its going to be on live tv?" Noah asked. He wasn't expecting it to be that big of a thing.

"Of course silly! Other performers want to know how their competition is doing as well, you know!" Angela gleefully laughed. She seemed nice. She was honest and kind like Addison, and energetic yet kinda shy like Jessica. And she was performing, like both of them.

"Say, who is this Performance Queen exactly?" Noah asked.

"Oh, she's the one who received six Queen Keys. Its everyone's goal to be just like her. Aah, I wish I could be like her one day."

"What's her name exactly?"

"Oh, its Skylar Belle. See, doesn't the name even sound perfect for a queen? She has a sister going around competing in Pokemon Performances as well, so if you find her, maybe you could meet the queen. Oh I hope I cross paths with her one day!" And then Angela just swooned and fell to the ground. Noah's eyes widened as he rushed to her side and helped her up.

"Heh, silly me." She giggled. Angela sure seemed tired.

"Here, let me get you to a room." Noah spoke calmly. Keeping her up, they slowly made their way down a hallway with doors on either side. Of course, now was obviously a great time to remember that Noah only had the one room he could use. And likely, he wasn't getting to Nurse Joy for the night. The hell type of luck did he have? Great luck or bad luck?

As he stepped into the room, Noah saw that the Pokemon Center rooms came with one bed, a nightstand with an alarm clock, and a bathroom. The bathroom had a shower, a bathtub, and a sink. Noah put his stuff to the side, then put Angela's stuff next to it. Helping Angela into the bed, she fell right asleep. Looking around, Noah wasn't very sure what to do. He was pretty sure sleeping on a bench in the lobby wasn't allowed, he'd have to stay in his room.

"The hell do I do?" Noah wondered. Well, he could always just cuddle up next to this girl that he just met and hope to god that she didn't care that he was there come next morning. Or, he could just...

* * *

Somewhere else, a man was sitting on a chair in front of a desk. His Persian laid by his feet, awaiting him to be done for the day. This man was just finishing up business, but had to read one more that was sent to him by one of his more trustworthy executives. It'd been weeks since he'd received a file from him. Putting the file on his desk, he looked at the R on the file before opening it up. It was a report.

 **Rocket Report 001**

 **Progress has been moving slow in Johto. We have yet to spot either Professor Oak or your missing son. I've sent a dispatch crew to Azalea with Turner as the lead force. We expect to hear from them in a couple days time.**

 **Some other recruits are out capturing Pokemon, but I don't think they'll have much luck. I know you don't like me saying this, but I'm starting to worry. We've been at this for weeks now, yet we've reached nothing yet. Maybe we should pull out?**

 **-Executive Jake**

The man sighed. Could his crew possibly get any worse?

* * *

With a loud groan, Noah's eyes opened. He definitely did not get a good nights sleep. To avoid any problems, Noah decided to sleep in the bathtub. Now, I can imagine that maybe one person out there intentionally slept in a bathtub out in the world, and now Noah could understand why that number was so low.

Then he heard a noise. It sounded like...a shower? It was then that Noah realized who he was still in the company of. What, did she just get up, look over at her supplies and think 'Well, I have no idea who owns that, but I should go get a shower.'? Something about this made Noah worry about Angela's well being for the future, but that wasn't the top priority right now. He didn't want to stay in the bathtub any longer, but he also was afraid of actually getting out. The shower was see through from what he figured out, so there was no way to just slip by without sneaking a peak.

So, Noah decided to just pretend to be asleep and wait. It took some time, but soon enough, the shower stopped and he heard Angela step out. Then, some more time passed. Way more time passed. Like, a lot of time passed before she left the bathroom. Noah didn't even hesitate to get out of the bathtub immediately afterwards. After stretching his back, he stepped out. And Angela was already gone.

"What the?" Noah looked where his belongings were and saw that she had taken her stuff. Had she...gotten ready for the contest? Hurridly, Noah checked the clock to see that he had 15 minutes till show time.

"Ah crap." He muttered to himself. Fixing up his hair and grabbing his stuff, Noah was out the door to his room. Stopping at the front desk, he saw Nurse Joy on shift. When he passed by, she recognized him immediately and pulled out two Pokeballs.

"We've taken very good care of them overnight. We hope you have a good day!" She said with a smile.

"Thank you." Noah replied, taking the two Pokeballs from her. Something popped back into his head. "Say, has anyone with a giant fire pig come around here recently? I need to talk to him."

"Giant fire pig?" Nurse Joy looked up for a moment. Her eyes then became wide. "Look, there's an elder down in Violet City who can help you with that. Tell him exactly what you told me, and he'll be sure to explain to you." She nodded rapidly.

Noah was confused. A person that only someone like an elder would know? That was very confusing, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. He was late as it was. "Thank you Nurse Joy." Noah spoke before walking out the back door. Putting his two Pokeballs in his pockets, he set course to the Performance spot. Fortunately, it wasn't hard to find. It was most certainly the largest building in the area, and Noah reached it quickly. Any pain he had felt from the Team Rocket experience was now gone, but was replaced with back pain. Oh well, at least he could run with this.

After paying the money for a ticket, Noah rushed inside to find the seat placed for him. Sitting down, he breathed a sigh of relief. He made it. While he had time, he took this opportunity to look around.

The place was packed. People of all genders, heights, sizes, and nationalities had crowded themselves inside the dome shaped area. It was similar to the feel of a rock concert, only this place had a sense of elegance around which kept people from going absolutely crazy. The lighting made the walls seem blue, with the stage floor definitely looking blue. Underneath his seat, Noah found something that looked similar to a glow stick. Judging from what he read in the brochures, he could only guess that this was the voting stick that he would use later on.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Boomed a voice. Everyone suddenly grew quiet. Noah smiled to himself, this was definitely the start of the Performance. And oh boy was he ready for it.

"It is my greatest and esteemed honor to announce ze beginning of ze Cherrygrove City Pokemon Performance! Bonjour mes amis, I am your host, Pierre!" Suddenly, there was a man dressed in blue with a blue top hat on stage. Noah had no idea where he came from, he was just there. There was a Pokemon by his side that Noah didn't know, but it looked like keys. It was a Klefki.

"We have gathered here today to experience ze wonders that Pokemon can create through the moves zey can perform. Zis is ze true way to test ze bond zat exist between Pokemon and people alike!" Pierre continued. Noah noticed the french accent in his voice immediately, but wasn't as drawn to that. What Noah was more drawn to was the fact that this guy was the host rather than a female. I mean, if all the competitors were female, why was this host here?

"Our judges for today are as followed! Johto's very own Pokemon Fan Club Manager, Johto's very own Number One Pokemon Chef, and one of ze ones who helped bring ze legendary Performance Queen to where she is now, Arista Fiore! Zese three will help judge ze first round. Our second round judges are none other zan you, ze audience! But by now, you should know what to do. So, without further ado, let us begin!" With those words, the dome began cheering like crazy. Clearly, they were excited.

"Now zen, our first round shall consist of cosplaying! Our theme for today shall be drawn out of a hat." Pulling off his hat, Pierre extended it to his Klefki who dove into the hat and came out with a slip of paper. Putting the hat back on, Pierre examined the paper.

"Ze theme shall be based off of ze worlds surrounding ze esteemed reality series, The Sole Smasher! Any character from ze worlds that had a representative in zat series, save from other Pokemon, are what shall be judged off of zis time around! So without further ado, lets bring out the first three Pokemon Performers!"

Suddenly, out came three girls from behind Pierre. None were recognizable to Noah, so he could only guess the females he knew would be later.

"Performers! You have five minutes to dress your Pokemon appropriately to ze theme! Now, move into ze dressing rooms behind you. Time will begin shortly." Noah then saw something similar to a small house appear behind the three performers. The three walked into the dressing rooms with whatever Pokemon they chose.

"Time begins now!" Then, there was an hourglass that appeared above Pierre. It was now that Noah really wished that he could look up what Pokemon Pierre owned because Noah didn't think that it was the stage that could do this. Oh how wrong he was though.

For the next five minutes, Noah waited. Was he really going to have to play a waiting game just to see Pokemon dressed up as someone? Well if anything, it was better than waiting in the bathtub.

A couple rounds went by with one girl happier than the other two each round. It was around round four where Noah finally recognized someone. It was Angela, all dressed up it a beautiful emerald dress. By her side was a Butterfree. Unfortunately for Noah, he had no idea what to call it since again, he had no Pokedex.

"It is now time for round four! Performers, make way to your dressing room!" The three listened to Pierre and went away. "Five minutes starting now!"

This was five minutes that Noah was interested in. Who knew what Angela was up to back there. Compared to her opponents, would she have what it takes to move on to the second round? After the hourglass ran out, the performers began stepping out.

Angela was the last to step out. Her Butterfree was multicolored from top to bottom. Almost like a rainbow, Noah recognized it instantly. Angela had dressed her Butterfree like the pixl butterfly Tippi from Paper Mario. While all the Pokemon had made the crowd gasp, this one definitely made an impact on the crowd. Noah smiled, he knew Angela had this one.

And he was right. The judges wasted no time in deciding Angela the winner of the round. She sure was ecstatic, as was her Butterfree. Her two opponents in the round certainly weren't happy. Their time was up, but they'd get another chance.

"And now, it is time for ze final round!" Pierre exclaimed as three more ladies appeared behind him. As Noah looked, he recognized two immediately. Addison and Jessica had been pitied against each other it seemed. Well, doesn't look like both will make the final round, now will it.

"Performers, make way to your dressing room!" Pierre exclaimed. The three gals did just that. For the last time, the hourglass appeared.

"Five minutes begins now!" The hourglass flipped over. With those five minutes, Noah wasn't really thinking too much. Rather, he was thinking about what the two friends were thinking right now. Were they thinking about handing it over to their partner? Were they trying their hardest to win? He couldn't even tell, but it was hurting his head for some reason. So, he logically stopped doing that.

"Times up!" Pierre announced. Noah looked up. Indeed, the timer had run out, but much faster than Noah had anticipated. Was he really that deep into thought over that?

The first girl came out with her Goldeen dressed up as Kine from the Kirby Series. Noah chuckled at the fact that a fish could actually be out of water and flopping about.

The second was Addison, who came out with a Buneary. So that's what Addison's second Pokemon was, a rabbit thing. At least, that's what Noah thought to himself. Buneary had been dressed to look like a Star Bunny from Super Mario Galaxy. Along with the sparkling as well, Noah thought that Addison had a very fair shot.

The third was Jessica, who came out with, in Noah's mind, some sort of yellow and blue sheep. To those who knew, it was a Mareep. Jessica had dressed it to look like Vesta from Animal Crossing. The scarf definitely looked nice, and Noah was certain their would be points for the most real looking towards her.

"Performers, we have a winner!" Pierre exclaimed. A lone spotlight began traveling the stage, just like it had for the first four competitors. In the end, it stopped on one whom the judges dubbed the winner.

"Performer Addison!" He cried out. Addison cried out in glee at this response, with Jessica acting very supportive towards her, although Noah had no idea what she was really feeling inside.

"Now zen, we shall take a short break. When we return, ze five performers who have passed round one will compete in round two. See you zen!"

An intermission? Perfect, Noah knew he passed by a concession stand on the way to his seat. Now would be the perfect time to grab some grub! Of course, he'd better move fast, or the other people in the dome would beat him to it. So, he bolted out of there.

* * *

"You can't be serious." A gruff voice groaned. "I'm going to fucking kill him when I find him."

"Sir, calm down."

"Calm down? If my boss finds out I can't even control one of my men, he's gonna tear me fucking apart!"

Suddenly, there was rustling in the woods. Another man stepped out. It seemed the angry one knew him.

"You! Where the fuck have you been!?"

"I came to show you. I think you'll be happy." The man responded.

"What is it?"

"Something that we've been searching for."

* * *

"Thank you for your patience ladies and gentlemen, it is time to resume ze Pokemon Performance with ze second round acts! Our five maidens who have passed the first stage flawlessly will now perform to be judge by you! So, without further ado, its time for ze singles performance!" Pierre announced. During the break, Noah had grabbed a popcorn and a milkshake. Not a good meal combo when you're out traveling, but why not?

So, they began. One at a time, a girl would come onto the stage with two of her Pokemon and perform using a combination of moves. The audience would ooh and aah and then they'd be done, and the next would do the same thing.

The fourth girl to appear was Angela. She had her two Pokemon by her sides. The first was Butterfree, or to Noah, the one from before. The second was another butterfly. A Vivillon with colors of the Ocean.

"Now my darling butterflies, lets get going!" Noah heard Angela say. Thank goodness for microphones. The two butterflies flew into the air on opposite sides of the dome.

"Butterfree, Stun Spore! Vivillon, Sleep Powder!" Angela ordered.

A beautiful combination of yellow and green appeared into the air. Slowly, the spores began falling towards the audience. While some people looked nervous as all hell, Noah found this as thrilling. The thought of not knowing what would happen next actually got Noah excited.

"Now you two, use Gust!" Angela ordered. The two butterflies then brought about a large stream of gust that swooped up the spores into the air into a swirl of air. "And finish with Psybeam!" Angela commanded. A pink ray emitted from her two Pokemon which shot towards the gust. When the two Psybeams collided into the gust of wind, it exploded. A mixture of colorful sparkles, particularly green, yellow, and pink, fell from the roof towards the audience. As they landed, it became clear that the spores had lost the affect that they naturally emitted with these moves. It truly was beautiful.

At some point during the sparkles, Butterfree and Vivillon had perched onto Angela's shoulders to recieve their fair share of applause and cheers. The performance was truly stunning, so Noah gave about a much larger amount of applause than he did the other three before her.

"Now, we are down to our final performance of the day! Performer Addison!" Pierre exclaimed. Up came Addison with her Chikorita and Buneary by her side. Despite being near the back, Noah could tell that Addison was nervous.

"Alright Buneary, use Hidden Power towards the sky. Chikorita, send a Razor Leaf after it!" Addison called out. Blue spheres began surrounding Buneary before being released upwards. Chikorita meanwhile summoned a bunch a leaves, and the released them towards the roof as well. Each leaf cut up one sphere, creating blue sparkles from each one.

"Now Chikorita, use Attract!" Addison spoke. It seemed that any nerves that Noah saw were gone now. With a wink, Chikorita summoned hearts towards the audience.

"Buneary, Quick Attack!" Buneary shot off at lightning quick speeds. With that speed, he passed each heart, which began following behind Buneary. Using its powerful feet, he sprung up into the sky with the hearts still following. Right into the sparkles from the previous move. The sparkles seemed attracted to the hearts and stuck to them. Then, Buneary released any last bit of speed by pressing it out with its arms and legs, This broke the hearts and sent them outwards in all directions along with the blue sparkles. It was truly beautiful.

Buneary landed back on Chikorita who posed for the audience alongside Addison. Truly remarkable for her first time, Noah thought. The audience sure seemed to agree. Well, Addison was from Cherrygrove after all, so it would make sense that she would have fans. But there were others from all over in that dome, so the amount of applause she received was quite fantastic.

Also, unlike the spores in Angela's performance, the power of Attract was still intact. As they rained down on Noah, he certainly felt...odd. He never knew what emotions like attraction felt like, but if he did, he'd be feeling it now, only a little forced at that. To Noah, it made him feel all warm inside. For some reason that he couldn't understand, thoughts of Addison and her Pokemon were flowing into his mind, almost clouding it.

But, the affects didn't last very long. Noah soon found himself snapping back to reality just as the final voting was about to begin.

"Now, audience members! Below your seat, you will find ze glow-stick key. Simply choose who you zink deserves ze princess key by casting your vote. Ze voting period begins now!"

People were awfully quick to cast their votes. Light was coming from all sources down towards the five ladies who had made it to round two. Of course, Noah would also have to make a decision. But who to pick? He certainly couldn't pick favorites, he barely knew any of them. Who did he think was best? Shaking his head, Noah realized that he wouldn't come to a decision in the amount of time allotted to him. So, he simply pressed a button and watch his light shine onto the performer he chose.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we have our winner! It is none other, zan Performer Angela!" Pierre exclaimed. The audience began cheering like crazy, Noah rather choosing to clap politely. So much for the sophisticated nature he saw when he first got here.

Angela didn't make a sound at first. Rather, she used the time to comprehend what she heard to look around at those about. The four who had also received votes seemed disappointed. They certainly weren't happy for losing, and neither were their Pokemon. Well, accept for one. Angela saw Addison's Pokemon trying to support the girl, making it clear that they had tried their hardest, and that she shouldn't be sad. The girl kneelled down and embraced her Pokemon, which made Angela smile. She was brought back to reality with her Butterfree and Vivillon tackling into their training in happiness. And they embraced well.

Noah smiled. The brochure certainly was right when it said that Performances bring about a bond not known elsewhere between People and Pokemon, with victory or defeat it seemed. Noah thought back to his Pokemon, and wondered just how much compassion they felt towards him. He himself wasn't very sure, but he knew that this was why he was out on a journey. To figure that out.

"Now, I shall present Performer Angela's first Princess Key of the Johto region!" Pierre announced, with his Klefki handing Angela a key too small for Noah to distinctively see. He could guess that it was just as elegant as the competition itself.

"Now, zat brings us to ze end of ze Cherrygrove City Pokemon Performance! Until next time, adieu mes amis!"

* * *

Stepping out of the performance hall, Noah couldn't even believe that it was already sunset. Wow, he had really spent the entire day in there, and had only eaten Popcorn. He was hungry.

So, before packing in for the night, Noah decided that now would be as good a time as ever to explore the city. Who knew what they had here? Well, as Noah walked around, he saw a lot of flowers. The city was decorated with them, and it was beautiful. No wonder the performance was held here. He wasn't sure why cosplaying was the first round, but that didn't really matter anymore.

"Ummm, excuse me?"

Noah spun around to see a man in a purple shirt looking right at him. "Can I help you?"

"Yes. Something about you is...intriguing. May I offer you some dinner?"

Noah felt very uncomfortable at this point. What type of person says your intriguing and then offers you dinner? Noah's brain told him he should reject, but his stomach said otherwise.

"Sure, I guess." Noah nodded. He was going to stay cautious, that's for sure.

So, they went to a place to eat. Service was nice, and the food was good. As the two sat and ate, Noah quickly opened up to him. He learned that his name was Eusine, but for most of the time Noah found himself talking about, well himself. At least until Noah started asking questions.

"So, what did you find intriguing about me?" Noah asked the mystery man while eating a french fry.

"Oh yes, I guess I should explain. You see, what I do is that I hunt down legendary Pokemon. Believe me or not, that's what I do. And your aura...it seemed so similar to that of one of the legendary Pokemon that I'm currently hunting down. Tell me, have you had any strange dreams as of late?" Eusine asked.

Noah thought. He certainly didn't sleep last night. But the night before...

"Yes actually. I still remember it quite well. I was in some sort of enclosed space, the shape of a cube. The walls were weird. And I heard voices that I didn't understand. They said something about one before me, fate, and blessings. Someone said something about being the king of their domain. I don't know what any of it means, but I can remember it so well. They knew I was turning ten."

Eusine nodded. "So the aura I felt may have been the blessings. And if that's the case...oh my."

"What is it?"

"I could be wrong, but you may have been blessed by the legendary Pokemon of the world!"

"What?"

"Look, there's an elder in Violet City who can explain much better to you than I probably could. I highly recommend going there as soon as possible. Understand?"

Blessed by the legendary Pokemon of the world? Now that's something you don't hear every day. Noah wasn't sure whether to take him seriously or not, but this was now the second time he's heard that he should visit this elder. He must've been important.

"Right. I'll set off tomorrow."

"Good. I'll alert him that you're on the way. In the meantime, I'll be out and about hunting more legendaries. You have a Pokegear correct? Let me register my number in it. If at any point I come across a legendary Pokemon, I'll tell you. The best thing for you would be to go to the spot I tell you. Understand?"

"Yes, I understand." Noah nodded. He felt like a broken record by now.

"Well, I'll pay the bill. You get some rest. It was a pleasure meeting you." Eusine smiled. Once the Pokegear finished registering his number, Eusine was on his way, leaving Noah with so much confusion about what the hell just happened.

After a couple minutes, Noah walked out of the restaurant. Noticing a beach to his left, he decided to walk across it and think. He had a lot to process, and this helped him out a lot. He couldn't answer any questions, but he could process everything told to him a little better. As he walked, he wasn't quite paying attention and bumped into someone.

"Oh, sorry." Noah mumbled.

"You better be." The person he bumped into snarled. Noah turned around after hearing this ugly voice to see the man walking away. He had red hair, but that was the only thing noticeable about him. Noah shook his head and kept walking.

Coming across a boardwalk, Noah began walking it. There wasn't much to it, just some wood that extended to the ocean. As he approached the edge, he saw someone that he recognized. It was Addison.

"Hey there." Noah spoke, walking beside her and leaning over the edge, just like she was doing.

"Hey." Addison smiled, looking over at him. Looking at her, Noah could see that she wasn't sad. She just seemed in deep thought.

"Is everything ok?" Noah asked.

Addison took a deep breath, realizing that Noah was indeed sharp. "That girl who won the Performance, Angela, she offered me the chance to travel with her. She said if I went with her, then us two could become so much better than we already are. All the experiences that I would have would incredible. But I had promised Jessica that we'd travel together. Now I don't know what to do."

She sighed, looking back out to the sea. Noah sighed, looking out as well. "Well, I'd say do whatever it is that makes you happy. Though, if both make you happy, then I'd say think about your Pokemon. What would make your Pokemon happy?"

Addison took a little bit of time to answer. "They would be happy...with me being happy. I'm sure they'd be happy to see me achieve something with them. If I work hard to become a great Pokemon Performer with Angela, I'm sure Chikorita and Buneary would be happy. Maybe, that's what I should do."

"Then go for it I say. Setting a goal for yourself and your Pokemon and then achieving it, that would be an incredible experience."

"Noah." Addison turned towards him. "Thank you."

* * *

The next morning, Noah made sure to have a good breakfast. Whoever made the food at the Pokemon Center sure did a good job, whether it was Nurse Joy or someone else. Once finished eating, he left the Center. Checking his Pokegear for the map, he searched for his objective. Violet City. From where he was, he had to go north, and then turn west once he reached a cave. It would be longer to reach than traveling from New Bark Town to Cherrygrove City, but that was the whole point of traveling, was it not? Getting from place to place despite how far it was. So, Noah went to the northern entrance and looked at the road ahead.

"Well, here we go." Noah said to himself with confidence brimming. The journey to understand himself could finally resume.

"Noah?"

Upon hearing his name, Noah turned around to find Jessica. She certainly didn't look all too happy.

"Hey there Jessica. I'm off to Violet City now. It was nice meeting you." Noah smiled.

"Noah? Is it ok if I go with you?"

"Huh?"

"See, Addison left at some point last night. She left a note saying that she's gone traveling. But she had promised to travel with me. I still really want to travel, but after what happened when I first met you, I'm nervous about it. So I was hoping you'd let me join you on wherever you're going. You are out to collect gym badges, right? So, let me join you and cheer you on, if that's alright with you of course." Jessica looked down. Noah started feeling really guilty. He was the one who convinced Addison to go out without Jessica, despite not knowing what she'd pick. He felt that he owed her some sort of experience for herself. Everyone should be allowed to have some memory to hold on to that they can remember and feel glad about it. If Jessica stayed here, what memory would that be?

"Of course you can come! How can I say no to an offer like that?" Noah asked with a very cheerful tone. Jessica walked up to Noah and then embraced him. While most ten year old kids would find this uncomfortable, Noah understood this notation.

"Thank you." Jessica whispered. The two stayed there for a while before they split. "So, I guess we should get going." Noah nodded at this. Hopefully, Jessica could get her energy back up before long.

And so, Noah and Jessica stepped out of the boundaries of Cherrygrove City once more, with adventure awaiting them. And they knew for sure, that they were ready for it.

 **To Be Continued...**

* * *

 **Rocket Report 002**

 **Professor Oak has been spotted by one of the scouters. I am sending one of the grunts to go deal with him and gain the required info. We should expect to see him again later tonight.**

 **There has been no word on Turner's group since we last split. I don't know if that's a good sign or not, but we can only hope that we didn't lose all of them at once, am I right? Heh heh.**

 **-Executive Jake**

* * *

 _Noah had actually voted for Addison to win in the final voting._

 _Alright, so some things to state._

 ** _1\. Pokemon Performances are from the Anime. Nothing about Master Class has been released yet, but since I'm gonna get there far before it is introduced in the anime, I need to make something up about it._**

 ** _2\. There are also no Queen Keys, and there is no Performance Queen. That is just me trying to connect the regions together._**

 ** _3\. There will be at least one Rocket Report each chapter to give you an idea on the enemy, just to make sure you don't feel it may be an unnecessary episode. No, each Rocket Report should be important towards their ultimate goal._**

 ** _4\. I am not entirely sure if Eusine can pick up the auras of people and Pokemon, but I chose to do so in order to progress plot. So deal with it._**

 _And that's that. Wow, I actually did make this chapter longer than the first one, something I didn't think I'd do for a Pokemon Performance chapter. But yeah, anyways, thank you to those who read this, I'll keep up these updates as often as I can._

 _Noah_

 _Pokemon Captured: 2_

 _Totodile (Water Type)_

 _Known Moves: Scratch, Leer, Water Gun, Bite_

 _Sentret (Normal Type)_

 _Known Moves: Scratch, Quick Attack, Defense Curl_

 _Jessica_

 _Pokemon Captured: 2_

 _Cyndaquil (Fire Type)_

 _Known Moves: Ember_

 _Mareep (Electric Type)_

 _Known Moves: None_

 _Without a Pokedex, self analysis cannot continue_

 _ **Question of the Day: What do you think about the Pokemon Anime?**_

 _ **To me, the Pokemon Anime started off really well. Kanto and Johto were really cool. I didn't mind Hoenn and Sinnoh, but they didn't compare really. Unova, oh god. That season was really bad to me, I had to stop watching. I can back to Kalos, and to me, I think that Kalos managed to bring back the former glory that the first season brought with the variety of interesting episodes and the interesting set of characters. Also, it might have to do with the fact that I started watching the Japanese version of the Anime during the XY era.**_


End file.
